South African Retailing

Our South African Retailing businesses trade as The Lewis Group, a leading retailer of household and electrical goods in Southern Africa.

The Lewis Group delivered a strong performance, with sales in rand up 13% and operating profit up 11%. This was helped by the growth in consumer demand in South Africa and a reduction in over-capacity in the furniture retailing industry. The Group also made good progress with a range of growth initiatives and improvements in operational efficiency.

The Lewis Group has 400 Lewis furniture stores and 47 Best Electric stores. During the year, it also acquired Lifestyle Living, a chain of 18 upmarket furniture and electronic goods stores. Convenience, choice and affordable credit terms are distinctive features of The Lewis Group and encourage customer loyalty.

Subject to market conditions, we plan to arrange a partial IPO of The Lewis Group during the calendar year 2004.

Summary

It has been another year of excellent progress for GUS. We have strong momentum in all our businesses, which reflects the continuing investment and clear strategies for driving growth. Looking ahead, we can see further scope to increase shareholder value significantly.

John Peace
Group Chief Executive